Recommend a hero for me

Andy and I just started playing Heroes of Newerth and are trying to get a couple other guys playing regularly as well. Seems like a pretty deep game and although we're getting destroyed in our matches we're having a lot of fun.

Considering that I normally like to play support class characters (healers and cc) what hero would you guys recommend I focus on. I've been messing around with the succubus, but I'd like something that's more directly helping out other chars. Are there any pure healers?

Demented Shaman has a multi-heal that he can cast almost constantly this is great in group battles, but also works out really well for just pushing a lane down; it heals allies and hurts enemies within range. Great support hero. He also can put a shield on allies that, when they are attacked, causes their health regeneration to go up drastically. He can also slow enemies and reduce their armor.

Also, Nymphora is a great support hero as well, she can heal and restore mana. She can also teleport to any part of the map, and with Staff of the Master she can pull allies to her.

There is Ophelia... but I wouldn't suggest her, really... just something to look into if you like.

But the ultimate would be Jeraziah. He is a tank. Can heal, cause immunity to magic damage (but that stops him from being able to heal that person temporarily), and can make all surrounding ally heroes immune to physical damage with his ultimate. Hook him up with a ring of sorcery and you'll always have mana to be casting. He is the best of the support heroes IMO and can easily change the outcome of any match if played well.

" Andy and I just started playing Heroes of Newerth and are trying to get a couple other guys playing regularly as well. Seems like a pretty deep game and although we're getting destroyed in our matches we're having a lot of fun. Considering that I normally like to play support class characters (healers and cc) what hero would you guys recommend I focus on. I've been messing around with the succubus, but I'd like something that's more directly helping out other chars. Are there any pure healers? "

Play Jeraziah with Electrician in the same lane. It's a godlike combo. Electrician starts pull on the enemy hero, and you heal him when he is within damage range (your heal damages nearby enemies). After this electrician pops his AOE damage while you autohit the enemy hero for a righteous strike proc that slows him down. This usually kills up until level 12 or so, where you will be well fed.

And a general tip: Don't autohit enemy creeps in your lane. All you're doing is pushing your lane towards the enemy tower, making yourself an easier gank target. Just stick to getting last hits on enemy creeps and denying your own.

Oh, and try getting Maliken on your team. If he is played well, and gets fed (which he will be if he is played well :P), then he can genocide a whole team at level 20+. Take advantage of it while it lasts, he is pretty overpowered at the moment.

Like someone else said, Jereziah (a.k.a. Omniknight from DotA) is an amazing healer hero. He has a single-target heal that restores 360 HP and damages nearby enemies for the same amount (in True Damage, which means that it's not reduced by magic resistance). His other important skill, Protective Charm, is a single-target debuff remover that imparts magic immunity on its target for 20 seconds. This is CRITICAL for carries (the fragile players that dish out the damage), since it'll protect them from magic damage and (almost) all disables/slows. His ultimate gives physical invulnerability to nearby allies for 5-7 seconds, which is crucial for team battles.

My suggestion before you pick one hero to specialize in is to at least play 1-2 games with as many heroes as possible to learn their abilities. Games will go much smoother if you know exactly what you're facing.

P.S. Most of the heroes in HoN have a direct counterpart from DotA, if you're familiar with those heroes.